Attached
by WhoAtHeart
Summary: Clint and Erica finally admit they have something more... and it makes both more vulnerable than ever.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1 - Way Too Early

Erica Owens, it was her name and yet, it wasn't. She'd had so many, too many, but that's what happens when you turn out to be an immortal demi-god and have to change where you live and who you are every couple decades so people don't get suspicious about you never looking older. It sucked, but there was nothing she could do about it.

She remembered the day that she realized she wasn't aging anymore. It had been a shock and her mind immediately began reeling and coming up with ways to remain off of anyone's radar. Unfortunately, her desire to help people wound up putting her smack dab in someone's view with lights and sirens.

Erica, then Ava Hart, came across the Strategic Scientific Reserve and managed to work her way into it as it became the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. When she joined and explained what and who she was and why she wanted to help they welcomed her in with open arms.

They all worked together to make S.H.I.E.L.D. what it was. When the ranks and security clearances were introduced Erica had the highest security clearance they had. She went on missions and did everything she could to keep the integrity and mission of S.H.I.E.L.D. on track.

But she'd grown weary of always being on the move, never able to stay in one place and when they wanted her to become Director she decided that it was time she resigned and allow Fury to take up that responsibility. Of course, she was there if she was truly needed, but she turned down most missions that they wanted to send her on.

Instead, she opened a diner across the street from S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, offering a place for agents to take a little time to relax. The diner was only open to S.H.I.E.L.D. agents so they knew that they could talk freely within the walls, but none of them knew that one of the highest ranking agents was the one giving them food and alcohol if they needed. Well, no one except the Avengers.

Clint had been gone nearly a month on an undercover mission where he had to pose as a billionaire with a gorgeous wife. The only problem was that the agent he was assigned with was one of the most annoying people he'd met in his entire life and considering that he grew up in the circus that really was saying something.

He was exhausted both physically and emotionally. He hated the missions that ended by simply bringing someone in rather than him having to use his specific skillset. Hell, Fury should have probably sent Natasha, but she was off doing something else. At least if it had been the two of them it would have been more bearable.

All he wanted to do was go home and sleep for a week, but he had to do a debrief in the next hour or two. Why that mattered he had no idea, it wasn't as if he would sleep his memories of the mission away. But that was the order and he would follow it.

It was nearly three in the morning, but there was only one person he wanted to see and she made the best damn coffee he'd ever had. It wasn't new for him to call Erica and ask her to open up the cafe so that he could rejuvenate with both caffeine and conversation. She constantly griped about how he was the only one who she would open up for, but he knew it was all in good fun. Plus, she lived right above the cafe.

He couldn't help but chuckle when the first thing he heard when Erica answered the phone was, "No."

"Oh, come on, you wouldn't leave a friend out in the cold would you?"

"It's nearly seventy degrees."

"You wouldn't leave a friend out in the heat would you."

"You're not my friend," Erica grumbled, but she was already getting dressed to go down and let Clint in. Her response had been the truth though, he was so much more than a friend to her. She knew the feelings were reciprocated, but she would wait until Clint figured it out and was ready to express himself.

"Pleeeeeeeease," Clint begged.

"How long have you been standing out there trying to decide if you were going to wake me or not?" she asked as she left her apartment and walked down to turn on the lights and unlock the door for him. She immediately started making what he always wanted when he came this late.

Clint smiled and hung up as she opened the door, "Only a few minutes."

Erica raised her eyebrows, even if she wasn't innately able to tell when someone was lying, she knew Clint well enough to read it on his face.

Clint sighed, "I had the worst time ever on this mission. Lord knows I missed your food and your coffee, but I didn't know if you would want to talk me through this one," he admitted shyly.

Erica's face softened and she gave him a small smile, "Clint, you know that I'm always here for you, no matter what. I'm awake for you right in the middle of the four hours of sleep I get at night. Agent Fischer isn't exactly fun to work with or helpful in making a mission go faster. She really should be fired."

Clint looked up at her and smiled, "You know, I know someone that could easily make that happen just by pulling rank. Since she is the highest ranking member of S.H.I.E.L.D."

Erica sighed, "I don't interfere anymore, you know that. I had my time. And helping the agents after long, hard days, it fulfills me more than any position of power possibly could." She turned and finished making Clit's triple espresso and then went to work making the pattern of an arrow in his cappuccino.

"You are a goddess," he breathed and he downed the espresso.

"Demi-goddess," she corrected with a smile.

"So picky," Clint sighed, shaking his head.

Erica placed a strawberry danish on the counter in front of Clint, "So, planning on getting it all off your chest or are we going to banter until you have to go across the street and be somewhat nice about Fischer's abilities and contributions on this case?"


	2. Chapter 2

The debrief took nearly four hours and as time went on Clint was getting more and more angry. Fischer's mistakes were being thrust onto him. He was being questioned on slip-ups that were because of the other agent and why the mission took so long. He only had so much patience and it was running out fast. He was trying to be as politically correct as he could rather than telling the truth bluntly.

Just as his hand balled into a fist and he was about to tell everything that the other agent had done on the assignment he felt a calming presence in his mind. Erica. His hand relaxed and he sat back in his chair, sighing before getting down to the nitty gritty.

"Agent Fischer was no help on this mission," he stated, happy that Erica had soothed him so that they would listen to his assessment rather than just thinking he was lashing out. "I could have done the same mission in half the time had she not been there. Honestly, the past four missions I've been on with her have been impeded by her presence. She needs to get better fast if I'm to work with her again."

Erica smiled as she listened to Clint's reasoning. His anger had washed over her like a fifty-foot wave. She usually shielded herself from reading people's thoughts and emotions, but she couldn't uphold that rule when Clint was this close. Half-way around the globe she could still sense that he was alive, but that was about it. But if he was anywhere in New York she could read him loud and clear.

Once Clint's meeting ended her went straight to the diner and hugged Erica just after she put a plate down in front of another agent. "Thank you," was all he said.

She smiled, "Of course, no one listens to someone when they're yelling." She tipped her head as she glanced him over, he looked even more haggard than he had when she'd seen him earlier. She wasn't sure he'd make it home on his motorcycle like this. "Go upstairs and lay down," she murmured quietly, "You look like shit," she added with a smirk.

Erica was good at her job and the agents that came in all usually ordered the same thing they always did so she had become accustomed to starting making orders as soon as she saw who walked in. However, today was a nice break from the same old thing. Not that she didn't like what she did, but it wasn't always very exciting. But today she had Clint's dreams to entertain her.

Once she had closed for the night she made Clint breakfast in bed for the two of them. It was still night, but she had a policy, only breakfast was allowed in bed.

She went up to her apartment and set the tray on the bedside table. Honestly, she was surprised that he was still asleep; his mission must have been harder than she originally thought.

Erica sat on the bed next to the sleeping man, noting how peaceful he looked as she stroked fingers gently through his hair.

She heard a tiny mumble that sounded like 'bacon' and looked down to find the agent stirring, immediately taking her fingers away.

"I thought I lost you there for a minute," Erica teased.

"Bullshit," Clint mumbled, "I know what you can do, remember."

"Maybe your heart stopped there for a bit and I actually thought you were dead, huh!"

Clint rolled his eyes and stretched, yawning as he relaxed again. "Did I smell…" Before he could say the word Erica was already holding a piece of bacon out for him. "You are a goddess," he sighed blissfully as he took the first bite.

"Demi-goddess," Erica corrected for what must be the ten-thousandth time.

Clint's response was instinctual, "So picky."

Erica had to swat Clint's hand out of the way when he reached for the last piece of bacon, "This meal is for both of us."

Clint let out a pathetic little whine and Erica rolled her eyes, "If you get the last piece of bacon I get all the strawberries."

Clint whined again and took a long minute trying to decide, bacon and strawberries were his favorite. Finally he reached for the last piece of bacon and took a bite.

Erica smiled and started to eat the strawberries, glad that she got to have them since these had the added bonus of whipped cream.

"You have weird dreams," Erica commented.

"Um, what did I dream?"

"I don't think that matters. I think it's better than nightmares."

Clint nodded, "True."

Erica sighed, "You were extremely sleepy."

"Yeah and I'm still exhausted."

"Well, you can stay the night if you want," she offered.

Clint smiled, she was so amazing and he had deep feelings for her, but he was afraid that if he expressed his feelings it could ruin their friendship. But the prospect of sleeping in the bed next to her made his heart soar. "I'd really like that."

They finished their meal in comfortable silence. They spoke here and there, but they were comfortable enough with each other that the silence wasn't at all awkward.

When they had finished Erica took the tray to the kitchen in her apartment and began washing the dishes, joined by Clint as he dried the dishes for her.

As they were on the last few dishes a slow smile crept onto her lips, "You dreamt of me," she hummed.

Clint's eyes went wide and he dropped the plate in his hands, shattering it on the ground.

He immediately dropped down and began picking up the pieces.

Erica joined him and helped him clean up, "I liked it," she whispered.

Clint looked up, blushing, "You did?" he asked quietly.

She nodded, "Very much. I like to know that our feelings match," she whispered.

Clint's eyes went wide, "Th-they do?"

"They do."

"Oh, wow."

Erica leaned in and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips.


	3. Build

Clint shrugged his shoulders, "You're 300 years old, anything you own could be an antique."

"I keep all of the important stuff in my other homes," she replied as she picked up the last of the big pieces and got out the broom.

"Other homes? Since when do you have other homes?"

"I'm sure we talked about this before… haven't we?"

"No."

"Well, I've had to have many homes. It's only been a small fraction of my life that I've been with the SSR and SHIELD. Before that I had to move from place to place every ten to twenty years. I figured it was better to have homes all over that I could just cycle through. Plus it's nice to be able to go on vacation anywhere I want," she teased.

"Do they just lay empty when you're not there?" Clint asked, very curious about this new fact about his friend. He always latched onto every detail she gave him about her life before SHIELD because it seemed to be the one topic she always skirted around.

"Oh no, what a waste that would be. I tend to lent them to agents for ops they're on. Sort of like a home base. Or in the case of your last assignment, a cover home."

"Wait, that was your house? Holy cow, that place was insane. I was afraid of touching anything and that soirée we had, man I was sweating bullets."

Erica couldn't help but chuckle a little, "If I was worried about something happening to the houses I wouldn't loan them out for assignments. They're just buildings."

"Just buildings? Wow, you have no idea how wrong you are about that. That place was beyond words."

"What I mean is that I'm not attached to them. I'm more attached to this apartment, my diner and the people here than I am to anything else I have." She wanted to say she was more attached to him, not the people here, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. "Besides, who would keep your ass fed at God awful times if I wasn't here?"

Clint didn't want to continue this conversation standing in the middle of Erica's kitchen so he led her to her sofa and they sat facing one another, "You mean more to me than that."

"I know," she murmured, "You mean more to me than a lot of things."

Clint leaned in a bit, "Erica, I've been trying so hard to deny my feelings for you and I just can't anymore. God, I really hope this doesn't ruin wh-."

Erica leaned in and kissed him, cutting him off mid-sentence and not caring. She had wanted this to happen for so long, but she was waiting until he was ready.

Clint pulled back and looked at her in awe before leaning back in and continuing their kiss. It was both sweet and desperate. It didn't take long before Erica was in his lap and Clint was directing the kiss, hair tangled in Erica's hair.

Their breathing was heavy, but they didn't care, they had been holding this back for so long that now that it was out there was no stopping them. Clint's hands moved down Erica's body and rested on her hips, lifting her shirt just enough that his hands were on her skin.

As soon as the hands came into contact with her skin Erica moaned and gently bit Clint's lip, causing a groan.

Clint stood, taking Erica with him and she immediately wrapped her legs around his waist. She was ready, so ready, but Clint pulled back, "Are you sure?" he panted.

Erica's heart melted when he asked permission and she gave him another peck, "Absolutely sure."

The next thing she knew she was tossed on the bed and her clothes were slowly being pulled off. It was such a difference from their hungry kisses, Clint was taking his time, he wanted to see and kiss every inch of new skin that he revealed. He'd thought of this moment for so long and he wanted to do it right, wanted to make her feel like the most beautiful and loved person on the Earth and he was just hoping he was succeeding.

Once she was completely bare she looked up at Clint through her lashes, "I believe I am at a disadvantage. You've seen all of me, but you haven't given me a glimpse of you."

Cling smirked and began to disrobe, doing so just as meticulously as he had her. Hearing her quiet whine he smiled down at her, "A Goddess should know that patience is a virtue."

"Demi-goddess," She replied automatically.

"So picky," he replied. The familiar exchange causing both of them to immediately become even more comfortable with the situation, not that they needed any help with that.

Clint slowly climbed onto the bed once he was bare and laid down next to Erica on his side facing her. She immediately rolled to look at him as well and they began to make out again, only this time their hands traveled each other's skin in light caresses. The touches never becoming sexual, just getting to know the body of the other.

Clint slowly kissed down Erica's neck, leaving little hickeys along the way. When he got to her collarbone he bit down and sucked a dark bruise on her skin. He smiled as he looked away and saw his handiwork. God, she was just so beautiful. But he didn't have a chance to look long before Erica pulled his head back so that they were kissing once more. This time it was all tongue and teeth and need and desperation.

Clint slowly grew hard between their bodies and Erica smirked, licking her lips as she moved back a bit and looked down. "I think someone needs a little attention," she hummed.

"You have no idea how much," Clint said, hissing as one of her fingers went down and circled the head of his cock and then immediately pulled away. "Such a tease," he lamented.

"Not so fast, I was going to ask if you prefer my hand or my mouth, that's not a tease now is it?" she asked, a mischievous smile on her lips.


	4. Tipped Over

Clint sucked in a sharp breath at her words, letting the air out in a groan. "God, I want every part of you."

Erica smiled softly, "I know, and you'll have me, but first you have a choice to make," she teased.

"Mouth," the sound was barely there.

"Mmm, good choice," she purred, moving down his body, kissing him here and there. Once she reached her goal she took the head of his cock into her mouth and suckled gently.

Clint could only hold off for thirty seconds before he begged, "More."

Erica looked up at him through her lashes and he groaned. She winked and took the entire length into her throat, just barely gagging. She ran her tongue all around his cock before pulling back so just the head was in her mouth again.

"Fuck," Clint moaned, he couldn't compete with 300 years of practice and skill. He just hoped he didn't disappoint.

Erica continued her actions, going faster and faster until he came in her mouth. She easily swallowed and kissed her way up his body, "Mmm," she hummed as she licked her lips, "That was incredible."

Clint was still breathing a little hard and he let out a huff of laughter, "I think that's my line."

"A girl can like doing that just as much as a man likes getting it done," she pointed out.

"Well, I guess, but I've never met one," he chuckled.

"What do you mean? You've known me for more than a year."

"Yeah, but I didn't know you liked giving a blow job that much until just now."

Erica just laughed and kissed him, rubbing her breasts and tweaking her nipples as she did so. She'd be just fine if they stopped her for now, she was very used to going without reciprocation and could very well get off on her own.

Clint rolled them so that he was hovering above her, "Hand or mouth?" he purred, repeating her question back at her.

She hummed and smiled, "Your choice."

Clint shook his head, "Nope, not gonna fly. You made me choose and now it's your turn."

Eri ca considered for a moment. It would be easier to guide him if he was using his fingers, but she could stimulate herself too if his mouth wasn't doing the job. "Mouth," she decided.

Clint smiled and licked his lips, sliding down on the bed and kissing just above her mons and then licking her wet folds, savoring her taste and loving how wet she was already. He hummed in pleasure as he used his fingers to part her lips and latched onto her clit easily, sucking gently.

He sure as hell knew what he was doing, Erica thought. Most men she'd been with had to be directed and she had to actually reveal her clit to them. Obviously she had terrible taste in sexual partners until now.

The moment Clint began sucking harder and adding some pressure with his lips she moaned loudly. "Fuck, that's good. You're amazing," she huffed, breathing harder as she squirmed and rocked her hips.

Clint nearly preened at the compliment, she'd probably had more than a little experience and he was glad that he rated an amazing. It only served to spur him on, becoming more enthusiastic with his sucking and thrusting two fingers inside of her.

Erica gasped as his fingers entered her, back arching off the bed. Damn, he was good. Little surprises during sex were almost always good and this proved no different. She moaned as he crooked his fingers and began rubbing her g-spot. Without warning she came with a loud moan.

Clint moved up her body after lapping up her juices and kissed her long and hard. He didn't think about the fact that she'd be tasting herself and once he did he drew back.

Her hand grabbed his hair and pulled him back down into the kiss. She didn't mind the taste of herself and found it sexy on occasion, this being one of them.

Clint pulled back, breathing heavily, "Do I stack up?" he asked with a teasing smile.

"Definitely top five," she teased.

"Only top five?"

"You're damn good Barton, damn good. Best I've had in over a century."

"I'll take it," he grinned, leaning in and kissing her again.

Erica smiled when she felt him grow hard against her leg, "Fuck me," she breathed.

He pulled back and looked at her with a grin, he wasn't going to argue, "Condoms?"

"Crap," she sighed, she hadn't had use for them since opening her diner and moving in above it and she wasn't going to risk it. Having to watch a significant other wither and die was horrible, but if her child didn't share her immortality she couldn't bear to watch them grow old and die as well.

Clint sat back and grabbed his pants and pulling a condom out of his wallet, "For just in case," he murmured.

"I'm just glad we don't have to stop. I don't care why the condom is there."


End file.
